 Pollard with the Tennessee Titans in 2014 | |||||||||||||
| No. 31, 49 | |||||||||||||
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| Position: | Safety | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born: | (1984-12-23)December 23, 1984 (age 40) Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 226 lb (103 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school: | South Side (Fort Wayne, Indiana) | ||||||||||||
| College: | Purdue | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2006: 2nd round, 54th pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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Bernard Karmell Pollard (born December 23, 1984) is an American former professionalfootball player who was asafety in theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for thePurdue Boilermakers, and was selected by theKansas City Chiefs in the second round of the2006 NFL draft. He has also played for theHouston Texans,Baltimore Ravens andTennessee Titans. Pollard was dubbed "the Bonecrusher" while at Purdue for his hard hits andtackles, and acquired the nickname "Patriot-Killer" as a professional, after inflicting injuries which would ultimately alter fourNew England Patriots seasons,[1][2] including ending PatriotsquarterbackTom Brady's2008 season.
Pollard attendedSouth Side High School inFort Wayne, Indiana, and was aletterman infootball,basketball andtrack & field. In football, as a senior, he was selected asThe News-Sentinel Area Player of the Year, and was a first-team All-State honoree. In track, he competed in thelong jump (PR of 6.60m) and as a member of the4 × 100 m (42.83s) relay squad.[3]
Pollard played three years atPurdue University. As a Freshman, he was named a First-team FreshmanAll-American byCollegefootballnews.com, a second-team byThe Sporting News and was selected to theBig Ten All-Freshman team byThe Sporting News in 2003. He compiled 66 tackles (42 solo), onepass break-up and onefumble recovery.
In 2004, he was named as a second-team All-Big Ten by coaches and honorable mention by the media. He led the team with 96 tackles (58 solo), 2 forced fumbles, 1sack, five pass break-ups and oneinterception He also blocked four kicks (twopunts, oneextra point and onefield goal).
Pollard's final year at Purdue was marred by altercations with coaches, the height of which occurred in the beginning of the season when he askedhead coachJoe Tiller to "Give me my papers", indicating the preference to transfer. Tiller did not grant the transfer request, but the incident proved a precursor to a tumultuous final year. Despite this Pollard still compiled 92 tackles (64 solo), 3 interceptions, 3 pass break-ups, 1 fumble recovery and 1 blocked punt. His 5 blocked punts are a Purdue record.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft1+5⁄8 in (1.87 m) | 224 lb (102 kg) | 33+1⁄4 in (0.84 m) | 8+1⁄2 in (0.22 m) | 4.59 s | 1.58 s | 2.67 s | 4.11 s | 6.88 s | 36.5 in (0.93 m) | 10 ft 11 in (3.33 m) | 18 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine/Pro Day[4][5] | ||||||||||||
Pollard was selected in the second round, 54th overall of the 2006 NFL Draft by theKansas City Chiefs.[6] Pollard played the majority of hisrookie season onspecial teams and ended the year with 10 tackles, 1 pass break-up, 1 forced fumble and 3 blocked punts, one againstArizona, one againstSan Diego, and one againstJacksonville (recovered in theend zone for a touchdown). Pollard was astarter in the2007 NFL season. Those three blocked punts rank second in Chiefs history, trailing only Chiefs Hall of Fame CBAlbert Lewis (1983–1993) who recorded 10.[7]
Pollard's blocked punt against the Jacksonville Jaguars, he blocked aChris Hanson punt and recovered for a touchdown, he helped propel the Kansas City Chiefs to a 35–30 win and an eventual playoff berth. He earned AFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors.[7]
He also blocked a punt against theDenver Broncos, inweek ten of the 2007 season, that went out of the end zone for asafety. The Chiefs eventually lost, 27 to 11. In the2007 season, he intercepted his first NFL pass offCarson Palmer against theCincinnati Bengals on October 14. Pollard also interceptedJon Kitna in the game againstDetroit Lions on December 23.[7]
On September 7, 2008, Pollard was involved in a play that ended withNew England Patriots quarterbackTom Brady being taken off the field with a knee injury and not returning for the rest of the game. It was later revealed that Pollard's hit on Brady had ended the quarterback's season.[8] Pollard later apologized for the hit, saying, "It was really an accident, I can't change what happened. I can't do anything but pray for him and hope he has a speedy recovery." The Brady hit, along with other cases where quarterbacks had suffered serious injuries on similar helmet-to-knee hits, resulted in a rules change in the NFL beginning with the 2009 season: a defensive player on the ground may no longer lunge or dive at the quarterback's lower legs.[9]
Pollard was Kansas City's leading tackler with a career-high 98 tackles in 2008 (84 solo) with one for loss, an interception, four passes defensed, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.[7]
On September 5, 2009, the Chiefs released Pollard.[10]
Pollard signed with theHouston Texans on September 24, 2009. In his first year with Houston, Pollard had a career year, racking up 102 tackles (81 solo), 1.5 sacks, 4 interceptions, as well as two defensive touchdowns. He had 111 tackles and four forced fumbles the next year.
On August 3, 2011, Pollard signed a two-year deal with theBaltimore Ravens, replacingDawan Landry, who had departed in free agency. While playing on the Ravens defense in 2011, Pollard recorded 75 tackles, two sacks, three forced fumbles, and an interception. On May 8, 2012, the Ravens signed Pollard to a three-year contract extension.[11] On October 26, Pollard was fined $7,875 for an unnecessary roughness penalty in Week 7 against theHouston Texans.[12]
Pollard proved to be more effective and successful for thefollowing season, recording 98 tackles, two sacks and an interception in 13 starts.[13] Despite missing the last three weeks due to a chest injury sustained against theWashington Redskins,[14] Pollard ended the regular season as the team's leading tackler. He would return forthe postseason, forcing a key fumble against theNew England Patriots in the AFC Championship game and then winning his firstSuper Bowl ring with the team.[15] He revealed after the season that he had been playing with a rib injury for nearly the entire season, as he sustained the injury during the Week 2 meeting against thePhiladelphia Eagles.[16]
In an interview withCBSSports.com's Clark Judge, Pollard claimed that unless significant changes are made, the NFL will cease to exist in 30 years. He said that while the league was making great strides toward making the game safer, players were becoming so big and so strong that concussions and other serious injuries would still continue to escalate. Eventually, Pollard said, "there's going to come a point where fans are going to get fed up with it" and stop watching.[17]On March 13, 2013, Pollard was released by the Ravens.[18]
On March 21, 2013, Pollard signed a one-year deal with theTennessee Titans.[19] On August 17, 2013, Pollard was fined $10,000 for a late hit on Aldrick Robinson during Preseason Week 2 against the Washington Redskins. On September 18, 2013, Pollard was fined $42,000 for a hit on Andre Johnson that led to Johnson getting a concussion. In 16 games of the 2013 year, Pollard made 99 combined tackles with 0.5 sacks, 3 interceptions, and 5 passes defended.
On March 3, 2014, Pollard and the Titans had agreed on a new two-year contract, keeping him in Tennessee through the2015 NFL season.[20] During Week 5 against theCleveland Browns, Pollard suffered an Achilles tendon injury following a Browns' go-ahead touchdown. The next day, an MRI revealed that his Achilles tendon was considered ruptured, prematurely ending his 2014 season. In 5 games, Pollard made 27 tackles with a sack and a pass defended. He was officially placed on injured reserve on October 8.[21]
In the early off-season, Pollard requested a release. On March 3, 2015, Pollard was released by the Titans.[22][23]
Beginning in 2008, while Pollard was with the Kansas City Chiefs, a series of events began to take place that would alter the course of four Patriots' seasons.
During the first week of the 2008 season, Pollard was knocked to the ground while trying to sack Tom Brady. On the ground, Pollard lunged at Brady's legs, connecting his helmet to Brady's left knee and tearing the quarterback's anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments. Brady's season was prematurely over, and the season marked only the second time (the other being2002) in theBrady–Belichick era where the team missed the playoffs.[24]
In 2009, while Pollard was with the Houston Texans, Brady threw a pass toWes Welker to the short left side of the field, which he then took up the field. Pollard closed in on Welker fast, forcing the diminutive receiver to cut to his right, possibly faster than he anticipated. His left plant foot slipped and he tore his ACL and MCL, missing the playoffs that year.[24]
In the AFC Championship Game following the 2011 season, Patriots tight endRob Gronkowski caught a pass of about 20 yards with Pollard in coverage. Pollard, now a member of the Baltimore Ravens, wrapped Gronkowski up to take him to the ground. As Gronkowski hit the turf, Pollard's right thigh forcefully landed on Gronkowski's left ankle. Gronkowski suffered a high ankle sprain. Gronkowski played in the Super Bowl two weeks later, but the injury limited him to just two catches for 26 yards.[24]
In the fourth quarter of the 2012 AFC Championship Game, as the Patriots were driving in an attempt to tie the game, Pollard launched a direct helmet-to-helmet hit which concussed running backStevan Ridley. Ridley immediately lost consciousness and control of the ball, which was scooped up by the Ravens to take over possession, while wide receiverBrandon Lloyd tended to his fallen teammate. This sealed the Ravens' victory, advancing them to Super Bowl XLVII, in which they defeated the San Francisco 49ers. Though Ridley recovered in time to play in the 2013 NFL season, he was unable to retain his job as a starter, and was released by five different NFL teams since 2013.
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Won theSuper Bowl | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Sfty | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | FF | FR | TD | ||
| 2006 | KC | 16 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2007 | KC | 16 | 15 | 90 | 74 | 16 | 1.0 | 1 | 2 | 23 | 11.5 | 21 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | KC | 16 | 16 | 98 | 78 | 20 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 2009 | HOU | 13 | 13 | 102 | 81 | 21 | 1.5 | 0 | 4 | 121 | 30.3 | 70 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 2010 | HOU | 15 | 15 | 111 | 81 | 30 | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 | BAL | 16 | 13 | 75 | 55 | 20 | 2.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 2012 | BAL | 13 | 13 | 98 | 71 | 27 | 2.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | TEN | 16 | 16 | 99 | 77 | 22 | 0.5 | 0 | 3 | 36 | 12.0 | 32 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | TEN | 5 | 5 | 27 | 22 | 5 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 126 | 106 | 711 | 550 | 161 | 10.5 | 1 | 12 | 180 | 15.0 | 70 | 1 | 51 | 13 | 8 | 1 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Sfty | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | FF | FR | TD | ||
| 2006 | KC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 | BAL | 2 | 2 | 17 | 10 | 7 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | BAL | 4 | 4 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 7 | 6 | 34 | 21 | 13 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Pollard is married to his wife Meghan with a son Jaylen and daughter Alonna.[7] He established "Pollard's Helping Hands Foundation", which focuses on feeding hungry urban children. He also served as a spokesperson for the annual "Hooked on Books" campaign, sponsored by the Junior League of Kansas City, Missouri.
